This movie is a remake of the 1951 film The Day the Earth Stood Still, based on the short sci-fi story Farewell to the Master by Harry Bates. The film sticks to the original storyline about a humanoid alien coming to the earth to destroy human race for the sake of preserving other lives. However, there are numerous additional inputs with newer technology and unpardonable changes in the script.
Klaatu (Keenu Reeves), the humanoid messenger, lands in Manhattan Park from the outer space alongwith a giant robot in a huge crystall ball like-object. The self defensive-destructive robot will start its work if humans fail to listen to Klaatu’s warning for changing their destructive lifestyles that are harming other living organisms.
Among the scientists who are summoned by NASA to examine the mysterious Klaatu and the object is Helen Benson (Jenifer Connelly), an astro-biologist. The US army wounds Klaatu and is admitted to a hospital where he adopts a human form. After coming to his senses Klaatu tries to reason with US secretary of defence Regina (Kathy Bates) that he had come to convince world leaders (refer UN Assembly) that humans need to change their ways. But the secretive US administration refuses to fall for his story except for Helen who somehow strikes a note with Klaatu.
Klaatu is taken to a detention centre but he escapes and calls up Helen who comes with talkative stepson Jacob (Jaden Smith). Klaatu, now convinced that humans will not change their ways, tells Helen to keep on driving until they reach a forest where he initiates the process of destroying human species. To be precise, the only good thing in this film is the core idea that the earth also belongs to other forms of life besides showing that there are still some good souls left on Earth which gives enough reason that human race need not be wiped out.
However universal the theme may be, this film falls apart as there are many loopholes in the storyline. The first scene which shows Reeves in the Karakoram mountain itself makes no sense at all. So are the steel-like insects that destroy everything on their path. Aren’t they supposed to kill only humans? How come so many of the giant crystal ball-like objects (modern day Noah’s Ark) that propped up all across the Earth suddenly were never discovered by scientists? Even the Indian promo poster which has Taj Mahal is misleading.
These are just a few of them. But the most annoying thing is that it deviates too far from the original. Result: you have a foreshorten film in which the director and scriptwriter never really understand each other. Even the grace of versatile actor Keanu Reeves cannot save this film because of its weak script, directionless direction, cluttered editing and passable visual effects.
-----------
English (U)
Cast: Keanu Reeves, Jennifer Connelly, Kathy Bates, Jaden Smith
Director: Scott
Klaatu (Keenu Reeves), the humanoid messenger, lands in Manhattan Park from the outer space alongwith a giant robot in a huge crystall ball like-object. The self defensive-destructive robot will start its work if humans fail to listen to Klaatu’s warning for changing their destructive lifestyles that are harming other living organisms.
Among the scientists who are summoned by NASA to examine the mysterious Klaatu and the object is Helen Benson (Jenifer Connelly), an astro-biologist. The US army wounds Klaatu and is admitted to a hospital where he adopts a human form. After coming to his senses Klaatu tries to reason with US secretary of defence Regina (Kathy Bates) that he had come to convince world leaders (refer UN Assembly) that humans need to change their ways. But the secretive US administration refuses to fall for his story except for Helen who somehow strikes a note with Klaatu.
Klaatu is taken to a detention centre but he escapes and calls up Helen who comes with talkative stepson Jacob (Jaden Smith). Klaatu, now convinced that humans will not change their ways, tells Helen to keep on driving until they reach a forest where he initiates the process of destroying human species. To be precise, the only good thing in this film is the core idea that the earth also belongs to other forms of life besides showing that there are still some good souls left on Earth which gives enough reason that human race need not be wiped out.
However universal the theme may be, this film falls apart as there are many loopholes in the storyline. The first scene which shows Reeves in the Karakoram mountain itself makes no sense at all. So are the steel-like insects that destroy everything on their path. Aren’t they supposed to kill only humans? How come so many of the giant crystal ball-like objects (modern day Noah’s Ark) that propped up all across the Earth suddenly were never discovered by scientists? Even the Indian promo poster which has Taj Mahal is misleading.
These are just a few of them. But the most annoying thing is that it deviates too far from the original. Result: you have a foreshorten film in which the director and scriptwriter never really understand each other. Even the grace of versatile actor Keanu Reeves cannot save this film because of its weak script, directionless direction, cluttered editing and passable visual effects.
-----------
English (U)
Cast: Keanu Reeves, Jennifer Connelly, Kathy Bates, Jaden Smith
Director: Scott
0 comments:
Post a Comment